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Phil Mushnick responds to Brooklyn Nets N*****s outrage

We wrote early this morning, "You know what Louis CK says about the 'N-Word?'" in response to today's Phil Mushnick column in the NY Post. Phil wrote:

As long as the Nets are allowing Jay-Z to call their marketing shots — what a shock that he chose black and white as the new team colors to stress, as the Nets explained, their new “urban” home — why not have him apply the full Jay-Z treatment?

Why the Brooklyn Nets when they can be the New York N------s? The cheerleaders could be the Brooklyn B----hes or Hoes. Team logo? A 9 mm with hollow-tip shell casings strewn beneath. Wanna be Jay-Z hip? Then go all the way!

After a brief conversation with Phil in which he indicated that he had not heard any of the internet response, he emailed Bob. Email follows:

Bob - Such obvious, wishful and ignorant mischaracterizations of what I write are common. I don't call black men the N-word; I don't regard young women as bitches and whores; I don't glorify the use of assault weapons and drugs. Jay-Z, on the other hand.....Is he the only NBA owner allowed to call black men N---ers?"

Jay-Z profits from the worst and most sustaining self-enslaving stereotypes of black-American culture and I'M the racist? Some truths, I guess, are just hard to read, let alone think about.

(Same column I provide support for Amar'e Stoudemire at a time when everyone in town is ripping him to shreds. That was my LEAD, too, but what does that matter?)

Well, there you go. We've been told that NY Post editors did not have any issue with the topic. When asked if they said anything after he had submitted it, Phil responded, "No."

Later in the Mushnick replied to an email from the Village Voice: ""James [King] - did you actually read what I wrote and what I've been writing for 30 years? I don't call black men niggas; my kids never heard the word until folks such as Jay-Z came along. I'd suggest you talk to him about it. What I wrote today was on Jay Z's artistry, and only the wishful and foolish would so badly misinterpret and mischaracterize it as you plan to do. Thanks - mushnick."

Jay Z hasn't touched "gang" rap in at least a decade. He's angry about Jay's involvement with the Nets, fine, but there's no need to cross the crass barrier with that thinly veiled racist vitriol to express that.

In general I agree with Phil about Jay Z's lyrics, and rap. Black youth look up to people like Jay Z, Diddy and Lil Wayne. We have a black President, a black Attorney General, we had a black female National Security Advisor, and a black Secretary of State, and I bet if you ask most black youth who would they rather be and look up to, they'll say Jay Z, Lil Wayne or Drake. So I get where he's coming from, but if he's trying to make that point then that's what he should have just said and it would have been a lot more constructive.

Mushnick has had 30 years to speak out against the stereotyping of blacks. Today was his 1st time claiming he did so in attacking Jay-Z.

Obviously, Jay-z is incapable of deviating from his rap persona from marketing for the Nets because white males like Mushnick and those who agree with him choose not to believe that Jay is capable for doing so.

the majority of black america doesnt look up to jay z or lil wayne, that again is a sterotype. if that were true, then that same would be true that all white ppl, look up to or want to be like madona, britney spears...dont believe the hpye in the media...you have different social groups within every culture, upper, mid and lower. the media seems to focus on black lower, (for some strange reason) then generalizes all blacks as if we all walk around with our pants on the floor, listening to lil wayne! this type of thinking is what killed trayvon martin...i wonder what would happen if the media started to focus on "their" lower class white culture??

So saying: "Why the Brooklyn Nets when they can be the New York N------s? The cheerleaders could be the Brooklyn B----hes or Hoes. Team logo? A 9 mm with hollow-tip shell casings strewn beneath. Want to be Jay-Z hip? Then go all the way!" and then doubling down on your racist screed by saying: "Jay-Z profits from the worst and most sustaining self-enslaving stereotypes of black-American culture and I'M the racist?" he continued. "Some truths, I guess, are just hard to read, let alone think about."

Where is the truths that are hard to read or think about Mr. So "Soon-To-Be-Fired-and-Neve​r-To-Work-Again Sports Journalist (and editors). So saying a sports franchise worth $312 Million should be renamed to New Jersey N*ggers and cheerleaders can be Brooklyn B*thces or Hoes is not racist in the least because somehow there had been "obvious, wishful and ignorant mischaracterizations" of your words. The only obvious, wishful and ignorant thing is that your editors went along with your racist schtick and the lot of you need to find new jobs that don't deal with the public!

If you don't understand how a race of people took a word that denigrated and degraded their entire race for well over 400 years, and made it a term of endearment for that race of people, then perhaps you learned history in Texas, and if that's the case, there's no teaching you.

I'm a Nets fan, and although I'm not totally onboard with this Brooklyn thing (I don't think they needed to leave Jersey, and fans stayed away from Newark exactly because they knew the team was there temporarily), Mushnick is just looking to get us to talk about him.

And again, as he has done for many, many years back when he would regularly troll professional wrestling fans, he's succeeded.

If you're offended by his comments, just do what I do, ignore the guy and just skip right ahead to Larry Brooks and his NHL coverage.

Hey people! He said he supported Amar'e (who I assume is brown or black) in the same column! How could you miss that! He was about to say his best friend in college was black, but his editor gave him a word limit. He will fit that in next time.

We got brothers full of Army, Mami's in ManoloBags by Chanel or Louis Vuitton logo'sAll attracted to Hov because they know doughWhen they see him, whips be EuropeanIf your a 10 chances your with himIf your a 5 you know you ridin' with themSick with the pen nig** no physician, in the world could fix himNo prescription, you can prescribe to subside his afflictionHe's not a sane man, he's more like the Rainman twitchin'You can't Reign Dance on this picnicNo Haitian voodoo, no headless chickenCan dead or sickness, no Quiji boardYou can't see me dawg, nig*** ya CB-4This ain't Chris Rock bit*h, it's the ROC bi*chAnd I'm the Franchise like the Houston RocketsYao Ming

[Verse 3]Forget English, talk body languageI be all over mami's like body paintersPink Diamond necklace, strawberry wristPlease excuse yourself, your very sickDon't confuse me with Marbury out this bit*hRun up on me at the light, you could lose your lifeMuthafu**a's must be smokin' they La, La, La or crack.45 gun smoke, choke off thatLet's get back to the music, I ain't with all thatPlus the fedz tappin' my music, yall get all that?I'm THEE! public industry #1Public industry #2 is my whole crew (R.O.C.!)Now I ain't down with who like me or who like youThat's GAY, I ain't into liking dudes no wayBut get a pen, I can tell you pric*s my plans for the futureI never make the news again, my man'll shoot ya

No. All class right there. No at all ripe for a parody that points out he never should have been approved for NBA ownership.

I'm African-American, not a fan of Jay-Z but I'm also not a fan of crapping on the guy in his push into other endeavors. I get disagreeing with his choices for the team uniform, but taking it to a purely racial level can't be supported. How does "urban" get conflated with moving to New York and updating the name with"n*gger" or "hoe"? How does going all the way with "urban" mean thug? This reveals more about him than Jay Z. Then is an awesome irony, after accusing Jay Z of being a stereotype, turns around with his spin on arguable the most famed sterotypical argument of the racist,"I can't be racist! I have a black friend named Charlie that says I'm not a racist, so there! How do u like dem apples!" Or in his case, "I defended a black player! I can't be racist!" In an age of the hidden racist rant, I personally appreciate his honesty. He really needs to get off the righteous indignation over being called out on his lunacy though.

While the words were harsh, certainly not poetic, they ring more of a grumpy old man who is lamenting his good old days while reciting the age-old “the world is going to hell in a hand basket and this generation is leading the way”, mantra than one of a hardened racist. In the meanwhile, Jay-Z is going to have to deal with a new reality: Build your empire by romanticizing the lyrical vernacular of the ghetto-life, and every now and then, the chickens are going to come home to roost--just to remind you.http://blazetelevisionnetwork.com/blog/ny-post-writer-to-jay-z-name-the-nets-the-ns-stay-true-to-your-art-form

Jay Z is obviously great at marketing since I didn't know who the Hell Phil Mushnick was until he attached his name to a world famous rapper. He has been writing for the Post for 30 years? And still no one outside of NYC knows who he is? Jay Z has been rapping less than 20 years and they know his name in every corner of the globe? I would say Mushnick greatly reveres Jay's business savvy. In this time of raw emotion following the lynching of a Black teen in Florida, Mushnick has done the only thing he can do to get attention: called a Black man a nigger. Racists need some originality.

Let's look up how other NBA and NFL owners made their money. Would someone's family who made their money on insurance(slave money) get the same criticism. Or, how about oil during apartied South Africa. Should we start going after how people made their money? If he wants to start...well, let's start. But I don't hear Phil making that argument. Phil used this situation to get out his repulsive, instictive and non-analytical analysis on race and money--period.

You know,it's kinda funny.The new uniforms are black AND white.So I'm guessing Phil will be making white stereotypes in next Friday's column? Haha,of course not.Mushnick is an antagonist,that is what he is paid to be.Continue to make narrow minded rants about someone,only to paint yourself as the innocent one in the discussion.I hope you keep your job.Just because you wrote a column lacking in any real thought does not mean you should lose your job.

The black man can certainly make changes to a logo. But when the black man is able to make changes to the logo because he demeaned women for years and threw the n-word around like it was the letter 'A' he is not someone you want your kids around.

It's amazing to me how poor reading comprehension skills have become in this country. Anyone calling Mushnick a racist is a moron and needs to go back to school. Mushnick was using the words Jay-Z has used for years to become an absurdly wealthy man. He didn't "call" anyone a "N----" He suggested the Nets use that as their new nickname if they're going to allow Jay-Z to make marketing decisions. Where is he calling anybody anything? And why are so many stupid people so quick to make a negative knee-jerk reaction without any sort of substance? Eliza, the fact that you don't know who Mushnick is speaks to your own ignorance. Mushnick is a columnist in New York. Does Jay-Z only sell records in New York? Or has he had a global marketing team behind him? Your statement is so ignorant it's comical. You say racists need some originality. I don't see where Mushnick called Jay-Z anything. Feel free to cite the offending sentence for us. You're going to be searching for a long time. Try not to say stupid stuff you can't prove. You know, like you just did.

Where is the truths that are hard to read or think about Mr. So "Soon-To-Be-Fired-and-Neve​r-To-Work-Again Sports Journalist (and editors). So saying a sports franchise worth $312 Million should be renamed to New Jersey N*ggers and cheerleaders can be Brooklyn B*thces or Hoes is not racist in the least because somehow there had been "obvious, wishful and ignorant mischaracterizations" of your words. The only obvious, wishful and ignorant thing is that your editors went along with your racist schtick and the lot of you need to find new jobs that don't deal with the public!

If you don't understand how a race of people took a word that denigrated and degraded their entire race for well over 400 years, and made it a term of endearment for that race of people, then perhaps you learned history in Texas, and if that's the case, there's no teaching you.

To take a word that symbolizes 400 years of denigration and turn it into a term of endearment is ridiculous. And is everyone in the Black race on board with this remarkable cultural transition? In a word "No." I know plenty of sensible Black people who despise the word and hate that it has come back into common usage BECAUSE of blacks. You want a term of endearment, find a word that doesn't have a history of denigration and degradation attached to it. Your "logic" is mystifying.

rural west michigan resident here...been an admirer and reader of phil's BRILLIANT work for over 20 years...pretending nobody outside of the big apple knows of this american treasure of a writer is almost as ignorant as saying he wasn't simply quoting what jay-Z had been saying, and profiting off of, enough so that he could afford part ownership of his very own professional sports franchise, for many years

Why not name them that? Black folks don't seem to be upset by the "Red Skins" or "Blackhawks" or "chiefs" or the Cleveland "Indians" but I guess its OK to have racist or derogatory names for teams as long as black people aren't offended. Bunch of hypocrits!